TECH LETTER #16 Tungsten Film - My Secret Weapon

When National Geographic did an article on lightning, (July, 1993) the cover featured Tungsten film. This special "night-balanced film" is featured on 7 of my 10 lightning photos. (The daylight film photos are "6 BOLT BOGGIE," DON"T MESS WITH GOD" and "GOD: IN DA HOUSE.") I love the beautiful blue-black colors of this film. Sahuaro Cactus and mountains look better on this film. Tungsten film also has these special features:

1. City lights look better on Tunsten film.
2. Lightning bolts have a more pure white color.
3. Car streaks also have a more colorful look.

Please study my photos, and decide which film is right for you. I use both types of film (daylight and tungsten), but I prefer Tungsten. I use Fuji T-64 tungsten. This is a professional slide film. When lightning season is over, I freeze my unused Tungsten film. It takes about 5 hours to thaw it out - then it's ready to be used again. During lightning season, I keep my film in the refrigerator, then it's ready to use in about an hour.

Exposure Times

Here are the correct exposure times (and the correct F-stops for Tungsten film). Even if you have never done any night photos, these exposures will give you accurate photos on your first attempts. Please study your results, and make any corrections you might need.

City Lights

1. (f-stop: 5.6)
2. (f-stop: 8)

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